San Antonio :: The Quarry Hofbrau & Beer Garden

Try one of the many ice cold draft beers, sample our Bar B Q menu items or other favorites or really go for top prize…select our signature bar drink… the Dos-a-Rita.

While talking to Trent at Nashville’s Pharmacy, he recommends that I try and stop at one of San Antonio’s “icehouses” where they serve bottled beer that is stored in beds of ice, giving the true “ice cold” brew experience. So, instead of going directly to Austin after Houston, I decide drop in on San Antonio and see what there is to drink.

I decide that I will throw a quick search out on the Internet and see if there are, in fact, any beer gardens worth checking out while I look for an icehouse. What I find is The Quarry Hofbrau. In all honesty, the website scared me. It looks like more of a sports bar than a beer garden. There are smart-phone apps, Internet memes and a calling to the “college crowd” to come to watch the basketball playoffs. These are all harmless things, but it just makes me feel anxious with activity and noise. None-the-less, I decided that it is worth a peek, especially since I am starving.

As I am pulling into the driveway leading to the large parking lot, I can see the garden area. It is impressive in it’s size. There are plenty of shade trees around the outside. I am concerned that I am just going to a restaurant with a big “beer patio,” rather than a true “beer garden.” And, in a few ways, that would turn out to be true.

As I walk around the garden area a bit, I can not find anything wrong with this place, but it just isn’t hitting me. There are huge beautiful shade trees, interesting metal tables, an outdoor bar, a performance stage, and the stonework walls and slab flooring gives a cool feel to an otherwise scorching hot day. This place reminds me of that guy that you know is super nice, pleasant, has 2 smart kids and has never wronged anyone… but you just don’t want to hang out with. A friendly acquaintance.

I order really tasty tempura mahi-mahi and a local brew. It’s nice out, and there are a few tables of people having a pleasant time listening to the endless country music that is piping in a little too loud for my sensitive non-country loving cochlea. Everything around me is well maintained and clean. I notice that Dos Equis must be a huge sponsor because their umbrellas, coasters and buckets are everywhere.

This is about the time that the waiter tells me that about 70% of the business here comes from…. THE DOS-A-RITA. The Quarry Hofbrau is the “Home of the Original” Dos-a-rita. I haven’t seen anything like it before (though I later learned that even a few places in Atlanta have a take on this). But I am in awe. Really, I am. It is a simple margarita, with an overturned Dos Quis bottle that slowly drains into the margarita as you drink it. Ingenious! The story is that the owner of The Quarry was drinking a margarita in Austin, when his buddy jokingly dunked his beer in his margarita. The establishment really seems to be merely a location to serve the Dos-A-Rita. The food and drinks are just extra. I have to try one of these things! They cost $10, and as I look around, I notice that just about everyone has one. How did I miss this?!

It is pretty good, but it is 2 alcoholic drinks in one, and it packs a bit of a punch! I take the opportunity to talk to some other partrons and get their opinion about the place. It is just a happy place. According to my server, starting around 6 the place gets packed. On the weekend, there can be a 2 hour wait that people are willing to endure for a chance to drink the Dos-A-Rita. The Quarry is the #1 seller of Dos Equis in San Antonio because of this.

I finish my drink(s) and I realize that I am buzzed. I take advantage of the free wifi for almost 2 hours while my mind settles back down. I think about how I came in to this friendly place with a sharply skeptical mind, and I would be leaving a huge lesson in the awesome power of “the specialty drink.” I came through San Antonio to find the magical icehouse, but after a Dos-A-Rita kicked my ass, I had to concede the rest of the night and try again in 2 days.

Once I am nice and sobered up, I set out to the back parking lot. The Quarry looks different to me now. It is no longer a place that is merely using the “beer garden” title to get guests in to drink, it used its drink to get guest into the garden.